hurricane katrina cost $106 billion. that's how much it cost to recover from that hurricane. this is going to surpass that. people are going to be thinking what can we do better so we don't have these horrible situations happen, and spending all this money that america will have to spend to recover from it it. >> eliot: the ex-spans and swath from new jersey, pennsylvania upwards, the devastation is huge. the economic toll, the cost of human life enormous, and awful to see. brandi hitt, thank you for joining us tonight. >> eliot: highlighting the emergency management agency. does mitt romney still >> eliot: natural disasters can i an unpleasant but strong reminder of the benefits and importance of a strong federal government. just don't tell the republicans. or more specifically mitt romney. here is romney during the g.o.p. primary debates in june of last year. >> fema is about to run out of money, and some people say it's on a case by case basis. how do you deal with something like that? >> absolutely. every time you have an occasion that takes something from the federal gov